The present invention relates to a hollow article cleaning apparatus of for reliably and effectively cleaning off foreign matter such as cutting chips attached to an interior of a hollow article, and to a hollow article cleaning method.
For example, a hollow article having a complicated shape such as an engine block or a water-cool exhaust pipe (exhaust pipe of the water jet craft or the like) in an engine is generally formed by casting and then is subjected various cutting working. At the time of the cutting working, since a large amount of cutting chips enter in the hollow article, after the hollow article is subjected to the cutting working, the hollow article is once cleaned and all the cutting chips are eliminated and then, the articles is moved to a next step (such as painting step and assembling step). Conventionally, a worker holds the articles which have been cut one at a time, and flows water inside the article using a hose to clean off the cutting chips.
However, with such a conventional cleaning manner in which the worker holds the hollow articles one at a time and cleaning by the hose, the cutting chips can not sufficiently be cleaned off depending upon its inside shape and moreover, it is extremely difficult to clean when the hollow article is large in size and heavy.
The object of the present invention is to substantially eliminate defects or drawbacks described above and to provide a hollow article cleaning apparatus and a hollow article cleaning method capable of reliably and effectively cleaning off foreign matter such as cutting chips attached to an interior of the hollow article, and to facilitate the cleaning of the large and heavy hollow article.
These and other objects can be achieved according to the present invention by providing a hollow article cleaning apparatus comprising a positioning means for positioning a hollow article to be cleaned in a fixed position, a plurality of cleaning medium injecting means movably disposed between an open position separated from a plurality of cleaning openings of said hollow article disposed by said positioning means and an intimate contact position that is in intimate contact with said cleaning openings for injecting a cleaning medium from said cleaning openings, a plurality of driving means for moving each of said cleaning medium injecting means between said open position and said intimate contact position, a cleaning medium supplying means for supplying said cleaning medium comprising a mixture of a cleaning liquid and a compressed air to each of said cleaning medium injecting means, and a control means for bringing each of said cleaning medium injecting means into intimate contact with said plurality of cleaning openings of said hollow article alternately for a fixed time, and for operating said driving means and said cleaning medium supplying means such that a cycle cleaning for injecting said cleaning medium into said hollow article can be carried out during said intimate contact.
In the preferred embodiment, a cleaning medium mixing portion for mixing said cleaning liquid and said compressed air is provided in said cleaning medium injecting means.
Further, the cleaning liquid constituting said cleaning medium is stored in a cleaning liquid reservoir, said hollow article cleaning apparatus further comprises a driving means for moving said positioning means such that said hollow article disposed by said positioning means moves vertically between an exposed position that is exposed above a liquid level of said cleaning liquid stored in said cleaning liquid reservoir and a soaked position that is soaked under said liquid level, and said control means is arranged such that after said hollow article is subjected to said cycle cleaning in said cleaning liquid in said soaked position, said hollow article is moved up to said exposed position and is again subjected to the cycle cleaning.
Also, the objects mentioned avobe can be achieved according to the present invention by providing a hollow article cleaning method wherein a cycle cleaning for injecting a cleaning medium comprising a mixture of a cleaning liquid and a compressed air from a plurality of cleaning openings of a hollow article for a fixed time alternately to clean an interior of said hollow article is first carried out in a cleaning liquid and then is carried out in the atmosphere.
According to the above structure, a cleaning medium in which a cleaning liquid and compressed air are uniformly mixed is injected into the hollow article alternately from a plurality of cleaning openings, the cleaning liquid is intensively dispersed in every corner along the inside shape of the hollow article, thereby causing the erosive action in cavitation manner, and it is possible to reliably and effectively clean off foreign matter such as cutting chips attached to an interior of the hollow article.
After the hollow article is once cleaned with the cleaning liquid, the hollow article is again cleaned in the atmosphere. Therefore, even if foreign matter such as cutting chips floating in the cleaning liquid remains in the hollow article when the hollow article is pulled out from the cleaning liquid, the remained foreign matter can reliably be cleaned off by the cycle cleaning in the atmosphere.
Further, after the hollow article to be cleaned is once disposed in the positioning means, it is unnecessary to take out until the cleaning is completed. Therefore, even when the hollow article is large and heavy, the hollow article can be effectively cleaned.